Democratic Party office in Charleston, SC vandalized with threatening signs, cement
Charleston County Democrats showed up to their West Ashley headquarters Saturday morning to find locks on their office doors had been filled with cement and threatening signs had been posted on the windows.
In a Facebook Live video that showed the scene, Charleston County Democratic Party Chair Colleen Condon said, “We do not appreciate this vandalism.”
“Please know that violence is not the answer,” Condon continued in the video, which was on Facebook about 11 a.m. “We do not blame any official organization for this, but this is going to be taken seriously. We will be pressing charges if we can determine it.”
The incident comes 10 days after rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol building, destroyed property and stole items from congressional offices as Congress was certifying the Electoral College results of the November election. The event resulted in five deaths.
President-elect Joe Biden will be sworn in on Wednesday.
The South Carolina Republican Party issued a statement on social media Saturday afternoon condemning the vandalism at the local Democratic Party office.
“This kind of behavior is unacceptable and it’s got to stop,” the party tweeted. “Whoever is responsible needs to be held accountable. We know all too well what it feels like to have offices vandalized and threatened — it’s scary and invasive.”
Charleston Police spokesman Charles Francis confirmed police responded at 9:55 a.m. to Charleston County Democratic Party Headquarters in reference to a vandalism.
“Some unknown person poured some type of putty over the lock and door handle. No other vandalism occurred to the building and no one at that location has received any recent threats,” Francis said in an emailed statement.
Investigators were on the scene canvassing the area and gathering information on Saturday morning.
No arrests have been made at this time, Francis said. Police also have increased their presence in the area.
Threats on the windows
In a video posted by Charleston County Democratic Party, a piece of paper could be seen taped to the window with the words “ATTN: CCDP” typed in heavy black font.
“Communists Have Infiltrated Our Government. Which Side Of The Aisle Will YOU walk,” the message read, before issuing a warning in all-caps. “THE WORLD IS WATCHING.”
Another sign taped to the front door appeared to have been ripped. What remained was a partial message that used an expletive with the name George Soros, a billionaire and prolific donor to Democratic causes and candidates.
“We are not going to allow violence and vandalism to win. We hope good people on both sides of the aisle condemn this hate crime,” Condon said in a text to The State newspaper.
Charleston police later confirmed they found two flyers at the site: the message about the world watching and a second flyer cursing Biden and Soros.
The Charleston County Democrats said in a statement on social media that the vandalism prompted them to cancel an event, where they were going to give away hand sanitizer at their headquarters on Ashley River Road.
The local party leases the office space and regularly hosts get-out-the-vote events and community volunteer activities. Condon said the party office has security cameras.
Condon thanked the police and implored people not to retaliate for the vandalism.
Acts of intimidation
There have been other allegations of political intimidation in South Carolina in recent months.
In October, Republican Nancy Mace said someone tried to intimidate her by vandalizing her vehicle hours before she was set to debate then-Congressman Democrat Joe Cunningham.
In September, a bullet was fired into the Lancaster County Republican Office. The incident resulted in accusations from state political party officials about who was to blame, with the S.C. GOP Party Chairman blaming the “radical left” and the S.C. Democratic Party Chair suggesting the shooting may have been an inside job.
Anyone with information about the incident at the Charleston County Democratic Party office is asked to call 843-743-7200.
This story was originally published January 16, 2021 at 12:36 PM.
